Memories

Sometime ago I started writing about my memories. I have mentioned  before that we were a very happy and close family or so I  thought, everything went wrong since my dear sister Dulce left us, it left a great void in my life even after 10 years I still feel this great loss.

Then for no reason that I know of my other sister distanced herself from me and it left me empty with so much sorrow that at times it was so hard to bear.
She comes to the Homeland on holiday like us and stays up the road from me and everyday comes down with her husband and they walk on the promenade, but not once does she knock on my door to say hi or such like.

Last week we went to my cousins funeral and there she was, we talked no problem there, so I said on the 13 of Feb the family are coming for lunch at mine I would like you both to come she looks at me and says, will see, what kind of answer is that.... Well we certainly will see I have a feeling that she won't come. What has happened to my family....where have they gone? Thank goodness I have the rest of my family...

Madeira

Today my walk was done right here....One doesn't have to go very far for the views, being surrounded by water wherever you go the views are always amazing, either the sun coming up or the ships going by, the sheer drops of the cliffs, and of course the flora.

Today i took it easy just went for a stroll round the corner and of course the sun was trying to break through the clouds..... so I just sat on a rock and waited it was so relaxing just listening to waves breaking against the rocks, at eight in the morning its just getting light and it feels so magical all around me all you can hear is the sea and the seagulls.

And the magic happens..... the sun breaks through in all its splendor it looks as if its coming out of the water, and I seat there and wait until its up high one feels so blessed .....

Madeira

Yesterday I did the walk in Machico, we walked along the levadas beautiful scenery the only thing that I have to complain if I wanted to, is not many stops to admire the views.
I would've liked to take the pace a little slower to be able to take it all in, I still managed to take some lovely pictures.

We walked 12 kilometers in total, my feet was throbbing but I would have done it all again.... Its a shame that I have discovered my Madeira this late, but thank goodness that I have now, and am willing to go the distance.

Madeira

As you must have gathered at the moment I am away, and my walks and the scenery are very different, the weather here has been warm and hot at times.
One of the reasons why I don't come to Madeira in the summer is the heat, I just cannot cope with it specially when one has the inner heat to contend with...

Anyway winter is the best time for me temperature is just wright, one has the best of both worlds spend January and February in the old Homeland, then go back home early March just in time to sow my seedlings and plant the veggies, and that way one does not have to bother anyone about watering the garden.

On Sunday I'll be doing one of the levadas walks am really looking forward to the walk, last time I was here I managed to do two walks, loved every single minute... am hoping to do another one in Feb too.  

 

Walking the Essex Way

Paula and I have been walking in our surrounding countryside for twenty years.... We have gone through five pairs of walking boots.
We are early birds, and the best time for witnessing the countryside awakening and see the seasons unfurl right before our eyes.

It has been an amazing journey we have crawled through the undergrowth, walked through brambles and nettles, I have come home scratched and stinging from nettles. but always looking forward to the next day and the next adventure as my walking partner likes to call it....

We have taken so many pictures and it doesn't mater how many times we go walking even if its the same route we always find something different to photograph and admire, It has been an amazing time of my life, thank you Paula for your company and you my friends for your lovely comments.
Here are some of my pictures through the seasons..

   

Walking the Essex way

I am having withdrawal symptoms, this week we have not managed a walk as yet, looking forward to Thursday hopefully I will have may walk, I feel so alive afterwards!  Full of energy....
Nothing like a good walk to recharge the batteries. Paula was telling me that on Christmas day there is a forecast for a hard frost, and she asked me if I wanted to have walk so I said yes of course.

At the end of the year I'll be going to the Homeland for a couple of months and one of the things that i'll miss will be the snow and the frosty mornings will miss our walks, that Paula and I so enjoy and of course sharing our pictures with FB friends...

Remember a time when Paula and I walked to watery lane that's the blue bell woods so beautiful, and we took the path through the woods and followed the canal and we couldn't find a way out so it took us ages to get home, on that day that walk took us nearly five hours by the time I got home hubby was getting ready for a search party...
Its quite funny the scrapes that Paula gets me into, if I complain she says just imagine that we are having an adventure.

We have a friend that lives in Maldon and sometimes Paula and I go there to share in our friends walk around Heybridge Basin, its lovely walking along the canal with all the boats and the sea birds above....Other times she comes to us to share in our walks...

Memories

Once again I find myself awake far to early, and the memories start kicking around in my head, like the time when hubby comes home from work and tells me that the factory is going to close down, and he starts talking about moving back to the old homeland, but I am not keen on the idea so for day's if not weeks, that's all he talks about and we argue non stop until one day tired of all the arguing I give  in, I don't really want to go back but to stop the arguments I agree although against my will to sell up and move.

Once hubby gets an idea its very hard to persuade him otherwise, it all come about the year before when our friends  moved back to Madeira and now that he was going to loose his job he thought it was the better option, so we sell up and the day arrives to emigrate but this time its to the homeland, because that's how it felt as if I was emigrating.

Of course hubby did not come we us he was suppose to follow at a later  date so we arrive in Madeira and move in with Mum until we move into our own home. Never forgot the girls faces when we went to see our home to be, the house had been closed for quite some time, and when we walked in there was cockroaches inside, the girls look at me and say we don't want to live here, but we had no choice and live there we did.

For the next few day's I cleaned scrubbed and disinfected every single corner of that house so by the time we moved in there was no cockroaches insight or so I thought, until one day after we had moved in we were in the lounge when I looked up and saw a roach on the ceiling so I grab the spray and give it a good spray

not knowing that it was going to fly so I scream and run for the front door with the girls screaming behind me.

After that I had to learn not to make a fuss otherwise the girls would not settle, the thing about cockroaches is they like the heat, so there was nothing for it we had to share lol....
So sprays were bought and before going to bed I used to spray outside around the doors and that kept them out thank goodness......